The Peoples Democratic Party senatorial candidate in the February 25, 2023, National Assembly Elections for Ebonyi South Zone, Senator Michael Nnachi, has rejected the judgment of the tribunal that upheld the declaration of a former governor of the state and Minister of Works, David Umahi, as the winner of the polls.
According to him, it was worrisome that the judges ruled in favour of Umahi against the dictates of relevant electoral laws, adding, “The three-man panel miscarried justice and spat on the face of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
He said this in a statement on Wednesday.
He said, “I totally reject the unjust, unconstitutional, and unwarranted judgment upholding Chief David Umahi as Ebonyi South senator.
“Having read through the judgment of the Ebonyi State National and State Assembly Election Petition Tribunal, which upheld the declaration of Chief David Umahi as a validly elected senator for the Ebonyi South Senatorial District by the Independent National Electoral Commission, I hereby categorically reject the judgment.
“It is to be noted that the three-man panel miscarried justice and spat on the face of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended in their ruling, which did not in any way conform to any known law in Nigeria.
“The decision of the Tribunal, which totally and deliberately ignored the facts put before it by the Peoples Democratic Party, our lawyers, and INEC and rather chose to manufacture legal technicalities to support their unjust ruling, can definitely not stand!
“Consequently, we have decided to appeal the ruling of the tribunal in the interest of the good people of Ebonyi South Senatorial District, whose mandate the tribunal has decided to highjack.”
Also, the Ebonyi State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, South Zone, has lambasted the Minister of Works, David Umahi, for flagrantly saying he will solely choose who will succeed him at the Senate.
The chairman of the state PDP chapter, Augustine Nwazunku, said in a statement on Wednesday, that Umahi should apologise for making such a sinister utterance.
Umahi was a senator representing the district until his resignation after being appointed minister by President Bola Tinubu.
During a courtesy call to Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru on September 9, Umahi publicly said, “I have the right to choose who will succeed me.”
But the PDP, in a statement, noted, “The attention of the People’s Democratic Party, Ebonyi State, has been drawn to the sinister statement credited to the Minister of Works, David Umahi, that he (Umahi) has the right to choose his replacement in the Senate.
“We hereby aver that such a statement from the minister was utterly unbecoming of a man of his status. Granted that Chief Umahi, who was Governor of Ebonyi State from 2015-2023, was controversially elected into the Senate, which he unilaterally abandoned without consultation with his constituents in Ebonyi South Senatorial District, in pursuit of a ministerial position.
“It is extremely preposterous of him to come back now to offer such a ludicrous and anti-democratic assertion that he should be allowed to choose his successor in the Senate.
“First and foremost, we expected an educated man like Umahi to know that the judgment of the Election Petitions Tribunal on the petitions brought against him by his opponents in the Senatorial elections of February 2023 was not the final decision on his controversial election into the Senate.
“His opponents, Mike Nnachi (PDP) and Linus Okorie have signalled their interest to appeal the tribunal’s judgment. It is only when the legal matters are concluded that the issue of re-run elections or bye-elections would be thrown up, depending on the final outcome of the legal matter. “
The party accused the minister of abuse of power, adding that it was indicative of his acts of lawlessness.
